Hi everyone. My chickens completed (or at least I thought they had) their Oct 5-start molt and started laying eggs intermittently Dec 4. They've stopped laying again a couple weeks later. They look absolutely beautiful with fluffy butts and everyone has a tail now (they had a bad start at another home).
They've been confined to their sleeping coop and caged area for several days now due to the snow here in Colorado. They haven't been outside in about a week. The 4 of them have a 10x10 covered and tarped run which they've spent long periods in before. But the last 4 days, the floor of the roost coop and the floor of the "cage" has been covered with little pin feathers.
Is this normal, you guys?
I've searched the archives and didn't see anything particular about this. I'm sorry if I missed it.
I didn't know how long they go on to lose pin feathers after their molt apparently had stopped.
Their "cage" has places to dustbathe, their food and water, straw bales they hop up on and 2 roosts that span the corners. I bury their food, hand out sunflower heads, and give them a daily treat of mw, a grain treat, apple, maybe a scrambled egg or two to keep them as entertained as I can.
They have good appetites, their poop is kind of sparse in the coop overnight, but with confinement, I've always found they eat less than when out in their big yard.
They're interested in things, don't seem ill, no parasites that I can locate, their roost coop is cleaned daily and I check the roosts daily as I have to move them to clean the poop boards. Their wood shavings bedding was replaced at Thanksgiving.
Tonight I have the heat lamp on since it's -14 outside (13 in their roost coop).
That's about all the info I have.
Thanks!!!!
They've been confined to their sleeping coop and caged area for several days now due to the snow here in Colorado. They haven't been outside in about a week. The 4 of them have a 10x10 covered and tarped run which they've spent long periods in before. But the last 4 days, the floor of the roost coop and the floor of the "cage" has been covered with little pin feathers.
Is this normal, you guys?
I've searched the archives and didn't see anything particular about this. I'm sorry if I missed it.
I didn't know how long they go on to lose pin feathers after their molt apparently had stopped.
Their "cage" has places to dustbathe, their food and water, straw bales they hop up on and 2 roosts that span the corners. I bury their food, hand out sunflower heads, and give them a daily treat of mw, a grain treat, apple, maybe a scrambled egg or two to keep them as entertained as I can.
They have good appetites, their poop is kind of sparse in the coop overnight, but with confinement, I've always found they eat less than when out in their big yard.
They're interested in things, don't seem ill, no parasites that I can locate, their roost coop is cleaned daily and I check the roosts daily as I have to move them to clean the poop boards. Their wood shavings bedding was replaced at Thanksgiving.
Tonight I have the heat lamp on since it's -14 outside (13 in their roost coop).
That's about all the info I have.
Thanks!!!!
